Under Age
by Tali1980
Summary: Don Eppes is 21 and visits his 16 year old brother Charlie at Princeton. A night out gets both of them in trouble with Professor Fleinhardt. Warning: spanking of a teenager / young adult, no slash
1. Chapter 1

**Under Age**

_xxx_

_Summary: Don Eppes is 21 and visits his 16 year old brother Charlie at Princeton. A night out gets both of them in trouble. Warning: spanking of a teenager / young adult, no slash_

_Supergirl, this story is for you. I am sorry I could not make it adult Don and Larry. I tried but that just didn't work. I hope you like this anyway and maybe I get an idea for a follow up later._

_Chapter 2 will be up Saturday at the latest._

_I don't own CBS, Numb3rs or any of the characters. _

xxx

Princeton's Professor Larry Fleinhardt critically eyed his favorite student. 16 year old Charles Eppes was the youngest and brightest he had ever taught but during today's seminar the kid was uncharacteristically distracted. He had been fidgeting; playing with his pager and twice when called upon failed to provide an answer of any sort.

"What do you say, Mr. Eppes?" the professor tried for a third time to engage the young man.

Charlie Eppes gave him a 'deer in the headlights' look. "Uhm, sorry Professor, what was the question?"

"I asked you to give your opinion to the last 20 minutes of discussion you have obviously not paid attention to." The Professor gave him a disapproving look and continued sternly, "I'd like to see you after class, Mr. Eppes."

Charlie blushed bright red while the other students snickered. It was very uncommon for the wunderkind they all had come to like and respect over the years to be reprimanded like that. However, an unusually grim glare from their normally so jovial professor sobered the whole group quickly.

Luckily the seminar was over a few minutes later and everybody trickled out. Charlie approached his mentor and friend who had sat down behind his desk a bit apprehensively. He knew he was in trouble but hoped it wasn't enough to warrant more than a lecture from Larry. None of his fellow students knew but the outwardly often chaotic professor had taken on a fatherly role for the young genius and provided what any teenager needed regardless of their intellect – support, guidance and occasionally correction.

Larry looked at his charge and neutrally asked, "What is going on, Charles?"

Expecting a lecture Charlie Eppes was thrown of a bit by the question, "Well, uhm … you know about parent's weekend starting tomorrow?" he asked needlessly. The professor had a hard time not to roll his eyes but limited himself to a nod and a kind, "Yes, I was looking forward to meeting your Mom and Dad again. We made plans for lunch on Sunday after the public lecture you are helping me with, remember?"

Charlie blushed a bit before continuing, "Uh, yeah … well they can't make it. My Dad hurt his foot yesterday. It's not serious but he isn't allowed to walk so he needs my Mom to stay with him. Don is coming instead."

Larry tried to gauge his student's mood. He had never met the elder Eppes son but from the stories he had been told over the years he surmised that Charlie idolized his older brother but was unsure if Don actually wanted to be around him. So he just carefully responded, "I see. Do you not want your brother to come?"

"Oh, yeah, I do. It'll be fun to hang out with him." Charlie said and then somewhat hesitantly continued, "I just don't know if he sees it the same way."

With a warm smile on his face the professor answered, "I am sure he is looking forward to spending time with you. You two haven't lived together for a long time and you aren't the kid brother that graduated High School the same year anymore. Maybe this is an opportunity for the two of you to reconnect again on a different level? And if he gives you a hard time, you come to me, ok?"

At that Charlie really looked him in the eyes for the first time and smiled. As always Larry made him feel so much better when he was insecure about how people viewed him.

"Now, as for today …" the professor continued his tone becoming sterner.

"Yeah, I am really sorry about that. I should have paid better attention." Charlie hurried to apologize.

"I understand. Nonetheless, I want you to go through chapter 7 and give me a 5 page summary plus answers to all questions at the end of the chapter. You can turn that in on Sunday when we do the Exhibit."

"But Larry, please …" Charlie started to whine.

"Oh no, no discussion or I might change my mind about punishing you." The professor gave his student a pointed look.

Charlie turned to the door to storm of and petulantly grumbled under his breath, "Sounds already like a punishment to me."

"Young man, stop right there." Larry thundered and quickly walked up behind him. His hand connected solidly with Charlie's backside twice before he started to scold, "This is the chapter we covered in class today. If you don't review it, you will not be able to follow next week either. I am making you do this, so you don't fall behind – not as a punishment."

His young student blushed and mumbled, "Sorry sir. I know."

"Alright," Larry put an arm around his shoulders and walked him out of the room, "I hope you'll enjoy the time with your brother and stop by my office some time so I can meet him if you like. And if there is anything you need you know where to find me, ok?"

"Ok." Charlie Eppes found his smile again and duck out from under his mentor's arm. He was now truly looking forward to spending the weekend with Don.

The next day – Friday – found a very restless Charlie Eppes who had trouble sitting through his only lecture of the day. All afternoon classes were cancelled since families would be arriving for Parent's Weekend. After class Charlie finished his homework and started on the extra assignment Larry had given him but decided to take a break just when his cell phone rang.

"Hey Don, I thought you were still in the air?" he answered eagerly.

"Hey Chuck," Don laughed a little at his baby brothers excitement; "I was lucky and got an earlier connection from JFK to Philadelphia. I already picked up the rental car and should be there in 40 minutes."

"Cool, are you hungry?" Charlie asked.

"Yeah, starving."

"Alright, why don't I meet you right on Lincoln in front of the Starbucks then? We can go to dinner and you don't need to try and find my dorm room." Charlie proposed.

"Sounds good. I'll call you when I am about 10 minutes away."

The brothers hung up. Don was still smiling about Charlie being so obviously happy to see him. They had not seen each other much apart from Christmas breaks in the last few years. Granted when they were still in school together it had been tough sometimes. Occasionally he had resented Charlie for all the attention he was getting and hadn't always been nice to him. But now – three years later – he wished he had enjoyed his little brother's company a bit more. So maybe this trip was a new beginning.

Charlie on the other hand bounced around in his dorm room – all school work completely forgotten – desperately trying to find something "cool" to wear. But then something clicked and he just put on the first thing he saw. Being around his popular brother had always made him feel like a geek but this time he was determined to just enjoy his company and stop thinking about what Don thought of him. Back when he was a freshman Larry had taught him to win the respect and affection of his classmates by being himself instead of trying to please others. It had worked then so why wouldn't it work now? Besides it had been so long since they spend any time together and by now he could understand why his brother was sometimes annoyed by having him around. It was time to turn a new leaf.

When Don arrived in Princeton the brothers spend a nice evening together. They had dinner and then ran into a few of Charlie's friends who were all about Don's age. Despite being a bit apprehensive about hanging out with the "smart kids" Don found he enjoyed their company. Charlie and his friends kept the math talk to a minimum and before they knew it, it was almost midnight and everyone said their good buys.

The brothers had decided to ditch the hotel room their parents had booked and just spend the night at Charlie's dorm room.

The next day Charlie dragged Don all around campus to show him everything – taking extra time for the athletics facilities – and check out various "Parent Weekend" activities. Don good naturedly led his brother take the lead appreciating that Charlie tried to stick to things he knew Don liked. In the late afternoon Charlie made his way to Larry Fleinhardt's office with Don in tow.

Don had already heard a lot about Professor Fleinhardt and felt a bit out of his element speaking to a Princeton professor. So he turned to teasing his brother, "I am not going to hear any complaints about you, am I?" he asked with mock strictness.

Charlie blushed. Obviously his brother could not know about his relationship with Larry but the question left him a bit flustered. "Ha, ha, I am not you." was his lame comeback as he opened the door.

Larry smiled at the two boys coming in trying to read their mood which seemed fine to him.

"Professor Fleinhardt, I'd like you to meet my brother Donald Eppes." Charlie introduced. Larry tried unsuccessfully to hide a chuckle at the unusual formality. He held out his hand to the elder Eppes, "It is very nice to meet you. I hope you had a good trip and your father is doing ok with his injury."

Don shook his hand, "Thank you professor. My dad is fine, just a bit immobile. Both of my parents are sorry they could not be here and I am supposed to tell you that they are looking forward to having lunch with you next time."

"Oh, that is quite alright. Maybe you and Charles want to join me for lunch tomorrow. It'd be my pleasure to take you out." Larry offered.

Don looked a bit unsure at his brother. The prospect of spending so much time with a professor was not necessarily something he was looking forward to – even though this one seemed nice. But at the hopeful expression in his brother's face he just said, "It'd be our pleasure, Professor Fleinhardt."

"If you like you can call me Larry. Your brother does too usually when we are not in class and he isn't trying to make an impression." Larry could not help laughing a bit.

"I'd like that." Don said finally relaxing and laughing as well at Charlie's sheepish expression.

"So what are your plans for the rest of the day?" Larry asked.

Now it was Charlie's turn to chime in, "Well there is a baseball game in half an hour I though we'd go to and then I guess have some dinner in town."

"That sounds nice. And I see you at 10 tomorrow then?"

Charlie nodded as Don inquired, "What is at ten?"

"Oh sorry, I thought Mom and Dad told you. Larry is giving a public lecture for Parents Weekend on basic physics laws tomorrow and I am helping with the experiments. It's only an hour and you don't have to come if you don't want … " Charlie trailed of a bit insecure. He just wanted his brother to enjoy this weekend and was afraid the prospect of a lecture would bore him.

"Why wouldn't I come, Chuck? I like experiments and I want to see you on stage." Don asked with a grin. He knew his brother was trying his hardest to be accommodating and hoped he'd relax a bit more around him.

Larry observed the exchange and thought to himself, 'Whatever happened in the past with these two. They are going to be fine.' Out loud he said, "Great. I see both of you tomorrow at the lecture then and later we'll go to lunch."

Don and Charlie said their good buys and headed out. At the Baseball game Don could tell that Charlie got a bit bored about half way through as he tried not to ramble on about the math involved. He promised himself that he'd make sure that his kid brother had a good time that night after making it through the whole game without a complaint just to please him.

So afterwards they called their parents to say Hello, changed in Charlie's dorm room and went into the town for dinner which was spent with amicable chatter. Later Don proposed to go to another bar for a few rounds of pool or air hockey which Charlie happily agreed to.

During their third game Don caught Charlie eyeing a group of four girls. They looked a bit younger than himself – maybe Freshmen or Sophomores - and one might have been a younger sister of one of the girls about Charlie's age. He grinned at his brother, "So you like what you are seeing."

Charlie blushed and didn't really say anything.

"Do you want to go over and talk to them?" Don proposed.

"Nooooo!" Charlie blushed a bit more.

"Why not?" Don asked.

The younger Eppes shrugged, "I don't know. I just don't want to. Let's finish this and go back."

Don really wanted Charlie to enjoy himself so he continued to push, "Oh come on, it'll be fun. We are just saying hello."

"Leave me alone, Don. I don't want to but you can go. I'll just go home by myself." Charlie replied his tone tense.

Don put his hands up in a gesture of surrender, "You don't have to and I am not leaving you alone. I am here to spend time with you and not to pick up girls. I just thought you'd have fun but if you don't then let's just continue playing."

"Oh, ok." Charlie felt a bit stupid for reacting so strongly. The truth was that he would have liked to talk to the girls – especially the younger one – but he didn't want to make a fool of himself in front of his brother.

"Hey, you want some of this?" Don held out his beer to him grinning.

Charlie grinned back and took the peace offering, discovering to his surprise that he actually liked the taste.

"So you are an Eppes after all." Don laughed. Of course he knew that giving his 16 year old brother beer wasn't the smartest idea but he just wanted the kid to relax.

As they went on playing pool Don noticed that Charlie "secretly" continued to take sips of his beer here and there. He smiled to himself and decided to let it go.

A little later Charlie all of the sudden looked at him and said, "You know I actually did want to talk to them. I was just chicken I guess."

Don tried not to laugh – apparently the alcohol had washed away some of his brothers shyness – and just said kindly, "You know that's normal, right? The trick is to not go into it with too many expectations. You are just smiling, saying hello and introducing yourself. If you don't get a good reaction you can move away and no harm done."

Charlie seemed to think his words over and nodded.

"They are still here. Do you want to give it a try?" Don asked neutrally.

"Yeah but I bet it'll be weird if they realize I go to school here and …" Charlie trailed of not wanting to reveal too many insecurities to his brother.

"Well there is no reason to say so right away. They'll probably just assume that I go to school here and you are my brother visiting? Come on, let's do this. It'll be fun." Don flashed him a quick smile and without giving Charlie any more time to think put a hand on his back and guided him over to the bar table the girls were occupying.

To Charlie's amazement it went really smooth. The girls were really nice and easy to talk to. The brothers were surprised to discover that the younger girl – Alicia – was indeed the sister of one of the older girls as they had assumed but also a Princeton Freshmen herself.

Charlie caught snippets of Don's conversation with her older sister Marie and heard her laugh, "Yeah it's weird to be in the same grade as your 16 year old sister but if she continues going the speed she is she'll probably be ahead of me next year."

It surprised him that there was no resentment in her voice and he was even more surprised when he heard Don's answer, "Yeah I know how that feels. This one here surpassed me long ago in school but after I realized that he still needs me as his big brother it stopped bothering me and I was actually pretty proud of the little 'genius'."

With a smile Charlie turned his attention back to Alicia and they continued chatting about classes and teachers and what it was like to be so much younger than your classmates. Charlie really liked this girl and wondered what it would be like to kiss her. This was a great evening and when the girls mentioned a party they had been invited to he was eager to agree to come along.

However before he could say anything Don leaned over to him and asked him so the girls couldn't hear, "Are you up for this? You have had some beer. Maybe we should call it a night?"

"No, Don. Please let's go. I didn't have that much." Charlie almost begged not wanting the night to end.

"Alright. Just do me a favor and stay close to me." Don agreed.

So they went to the party which seemed both fun and safe as far as college parties go. Unbeknownst to Don Charlie actually managed to get his hands on some mixed drinks which he shared with Alicia – his promise to stay close to his brother long forgotten. He hoped he could work up the courage for a good night kiss this way. But before he had the chance Marie noticed both of them getting pretty drunk and decided it was better to leave. She gave them enough room to exchange phone numbers but a kiss was out of the question. After saying good night to Don and whispering something in his ear she put an arm around Alicia's shoulders and led her out.

After they left Don turned to Charlie and just said, "I am glad you had fun but I think we better go too."

Not really seeing a reason to stay after they girls were gone Charlie just nodded and allowed Don to usher him back to his dorm room where he fell onto his bed in clothes utterly exhausted. Don had to smile to himself at how young his brother looked just then. He took of his shoes and helped him out of the jeans before waking him up just enough to have him drink a glass of water and take an aspirin as a precaution. But he did feel a tinge of guilt about his brother's drinking and planned to have chat with him the next day.

The next morning Don woke up to the sounds of Charlie throwing up in the bathroom. He rushed to his side but there wasn't much he could do but put a cold towel on his brother's neck and rub his back until it was over. He felt even worse for starting this by giving Charlie beer the night before. After helping Charlie stand to brush his teeth he got out more water and aspirin and offered both to his younger brother who gratefully accepted.

After they settled back in the room Charlie asked coarsely, "What time is it?"

"About ten thirty or ten forty five I think." Don answered.

Charlie looked at his watch to confirm the exact time and groaned, "I am so dead."

Don looked at him confused and then remembered, "Oh buddy, I am so sorry. Your lecture with Larry."

"I need to go talk to him." Charlie jumped up and frantically dashed around the room trying to find some clothes.

Don got up and stilled him for a moment, "Hey, do you want me to come with you? This is my fault. I shouldn't have given you beer and should have made sure we came back at a decent time."

"No, no it'll be alright." Charlie sent him a fake smile.

"You sure?" Don asked worried.

"Yeah and it's not your fault. I got more to drink at the party from someone I know." Charlie admitted

"No kidding, Sherlock. I worked that one out for myself." Don grinned at him to lighten the mood, "You think you'll be in a lot of trouble?"

"I don't know." Charlie replied honestly, "This was just a favor, not for credit or anything, but Larry will be disappointed I let him down." Charlie did not intend on letting his brother know how he feared Larry would show his disappointment – but on the other hand maybe he'd get off lightly this time. After all Larry only needed to know that he had overslept and that can happen to anyone, right?

"I am sorry, buddy." Don said with a sympathetic grimace, "and you are sure I shouldn't come with you?"

"No, I'll be fine. But I better get going."

"Alright, I'll take a shower and see you later."


	2. Chapter 2

**Part 2**

Charlie flew across campus to Larry's office. When he got there it was locked so he just sat on the floor and drew his knees up to rest his hurting head until Larry arrived.

The young professor showed up not even 5 minutes later finding his charge asleep in a less than comfortable position on the floor. He shook his shoulder, "Charles."

Charlie woke up startled and quickly scrambled to his feet not able to completely conceal the fact that he got dizzy and had to steady himself with a hand on the wall.

"Come on in, Charles. I am glad you are ok. I missed you this morning." Larry said neutrally while unlocking the door.

Charlie trailed inside after his professor, "Larry, I am really, really sorry I wasn't there. We overslept. I didn't mean to worry you."

"Charles, sit down please." Larry gestured at the chair in front of his desk and sat down himself, "Tell me why you overslept."

Charlie was a bit thrown off by that, "Well, uhm … we stayed out kinda late, I guess."

"I see. How late exactly did you stay out?" Larry inquired.

Charlie blushed and looked away, "One or two am I think."

Larry had a hard time not to react to the obvious lie. "One or two am, I see. So how come you overslept a 10 am commitment then? You don't usually sleep this much, I don't think."

"Maybe I was just tired and we did stay up a bit longer after we got in." Charlie looked very uncomfortable, "I am really sorry."

Larry shook his head in disbelief, "I see. Well tell me this Charles. If you got in at one or two am how is it possible that people saw you and Don walking around campus and enter your dormitory at five am this morning?"

"Uhm," Charlie looked at the floor blushing, "I don't know."

"Charles, you know the rules and you know how I feel about lying. Before you make it any worse for yourself I suggest you tell me what happened last night. The truth." Larry decided that the stern approach might move things along faster.

"Okay, okay, we went to dinner and then to a bar where we played pool and talked to some people and they invited us to go to a party which we went to and then I guess we only got back at five. We just had fun - nothing happened. I promise."

"Nothing happened? Nothing else you want to tell me about?" Larry inquired.

Charlie knew that he should come clean about the alcohol but he just couldn't bring himself to do it. He did not want to see the disappointment in his mentor's eyes so he just shook his head.

"A lie by omission is still a lie." Larry warned.

Charlie stayed quiet looking at the floor.

"Charlie, are you really trying to sit there and expect me to believe that you did not drink last night? Because buddy, even it I didn't have three different people telling me this morning about you at that party I would have seen the signs from a mile away."

Charlie dropped his head further and whispered, "I am sorry."

"Sorry about what you did or that you go caught?" Larry asked rhetorically before continuing, "Now I have one last question, did you finish the assignment I gave you on Thursday? I can see you don't have it with you but is it ready?"

Charlie looked up in shocked surprise and just shook his head. He had completely forgotten about it.

"Ok, Charles, so let me summarize this. You didn't do the assignment I gave you, you missed a commitment you made to me months ago, you stayed out way past the time you and I agreed to, drank alcohol even though you are under age and on top of it you lied to me. Twice. Am I missing anything?" This time the question wasn't rhetorical.

"No sir." Charlie answered almost inaudible studying his shoes.

"Look at me, Charles." The professor ordered and continued after Charlie complied, "The first three things I would probably have led go with a lecture and a weeks worth of grounding but for the alcohol and lying I can't let you off the hook that easy. You have earned yourself a spanking, young man."

Charlie nodded miserably. He had assumed as much.

"On top of that you will be grounded for two weeks during which you will stay at my apartment so I can keep an eye on you. And I will be talking to your father."

If possible Charlie looked even more miserable at that.

Larry took a pity on him and said more kindly, "Charlie, it will be ok. We have an agreement and this is one of the things your parents need to know about. Your Dad will not punish you for the same thing a second time. You know that."

"I know," Charlie said quietly averting his mentor's eyes, "but he'll be disappointed. Just like you."

Larry sighed, "Yes that he will be. And yes I am too. But we'll get over it. Listen Charlie, making mistakes is part of life especially for someone your age. That's why we have this arrangement – you might be graduating college soon but that doesn't mean you can't or won't act like any other 16 year old. And just like any other 16 year old you'll have to live with the consequences if you mess up. You understand that, don't you?"

Charlie nodded feeling ashamed of himself. He should not have lied to Larry. And he shouldn't have taken the drinks at the party behind Don's back.

"Okay kid," Larry continued, "I am giving you one choice. We can take care of your spanking now or it can wait until after your brother leaves. It's up to you."

The young genius thought about it for a moment. Putting it off sounded nice but he realized that he did not want this hanging over his head. So he just mumbled, "Better now."

Larry looked at him serious for a moment before saying, "Okay then." Opening the bottom drawer of his desk he took out a wooden ruler and laid it on the table before getting up to lock the door.

Charlie looked at the ruler with contempt. Typically Larry just spanked him with his hand and reserved the ruler for really serious infractions. It was long and wide and heavy and stung like hell – he hated it with a passion. But even more he hated the fact that he messed up bad enough that the man he deeply respected and admired thought this was necessary.

After Larry locked the door he came back and put a hand on Charlie's shoulder, "Come on, you know the drill."

Charlie sighed and stood up to walk into what they called the 'library' followed by Larry who had picked up the ruler again. The 'library' was really a small separate room originally intended for storage that wasn't accessible from the hallway. The professor however had turned it into a quaint little reading room with a desk and a sofa he sometimes slept on. Charlie often came by and did his homework in here while Larry met with students during office hours. The 'library' also offered enough privacy and a homey atmosphere that Larry though were necessary if he had to punish Charlie and did not want to wait until he could get him to his own apartment.

Both of them made their way to the couch where Larry sat down and Charlie stood shamefacedly and somewhat hesitant to his right.

"Charles!" the professor warned in order to remind Charlie what was expected of him.

The young student sighed and quickly opened his jeans and pushed them down to his knees. Larry did not waste any time to guide the teenager over his lap and start spanking him firmly with his hand – the ruler had been put on the arm rest for the time being.

He made sure that his swats covered all of Charlie's backside down to the top of his tights. After about 20 solid spanks Charlie started to breath heavily and squirm on his lap. The professor took a short break to take his charge's boxer shorts down and expose his by now deep pink backside.

"No, please Larry. Not bare …" Charlie begged.

"Oh yes." Larry scolded as he resumed the spanking on the bare behind in front of him, "This is serious."

After a few hard spanks to Charlie's exposed sit spot the young student started to cry softly.

"Tell me" **SPANK** "why you deserve" **SPANK** "this spanking!" **SPANK** **SPANK** **SPANK** Larry ordered while slowing down and easing up on the swats a bit to allow Charlie to think.

"Because … Ow" **SPANK** "I drank alcohol" **SPANK** "and … I overslept" **SPANK **"because I stayed out" **SPANK** "too late …please Larry" **SPANK** "and I didn't do my homework" **SPANK**

By now Charlie was seriously crying. His backside was on fire and Larry had not even used the ruler yet.

"What else?" Larry cued him with three swats to his upper tights.

**SPANK SPANK SPANK**

"Ow … I lied" **SPANK **"to you" **SPANK SPANK SPANK**

Larry stopped spanking to give the wayward young man over his knees a moment to catch his breath while he picked up the ruler. Charlie knew what was going on and turned his head to look at his mentor, "How many?" he asked quietly tears streaming down his face.

Larry's heart about stopped at the pitiful question and he seriously thought about letting him off without using the ruler. He never liked having to spank Charlie and was thankful that it wasn't necessary very often. But then he thought about what could have happened if the boys had been caught and what could happen if Charlie didn't learn his lesson today and gathered his resolve.

"Twelve," he answered while rubbing small circles on Charlie's back, "six for lying and six for drinking alcohol."

Charlie did not say anything to that even though he was pretty sure that he'd never gotten more than six with the ruler before. After a last pleading look he just turned around and grabbed a pillow to hide his face in.

Larry sighed and decided to get it over with. He raised his hand and brought the ruler down three times in the middle of the upturned backside in front of him.

**SMACK SMACK SMACK**

Charlie squirmed and kicked his legs to avoid the punishment.

Holding him firmly around the middle Larry added another three smacks to Charlie's sit spot.

**SMACK SMACK SMACK**

The young man sobbed heavily and squirmed even more trying to get away from hated ruler.

"I know this hurts, buddy, but you need to hold still and accept your punishment." Larry encouraged, "We are almost done."

Charlie forced himself to stop moving and hugged the pillow tight. Larry raised the ruler again and gave Charlie the last six smacks in quick succession.

**SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK**

The chastised young man had gone limp over his lap and simply sobbed. Larry pulled his boxer shorts back up and just let him cry while rubbing circles on his back. After Charlie calmed a bit the professor helped him up and went to put the ruler away and give Charlie a moment to adjust his clothing.

As he came back he gathered the still crying teenager in his arms and spoke softly to him, "You are okay. Just let it out, buddy."

"I am sorry, Larry. I won't ever go to a party or drink again." Charlie promised after he got his crying under control.

"I know. And you can go to parties just let me know beforehand like we agreed to and stay away from alcohol until you are old enough, ok?" Larry said kindly.

Charlie nodded giving his mentor a teary smile.

"And no more lying, right?" Larry inquired with mock sternness.

"No." Charlie shook his head vigorously.

"Alright kid, do you want to lie down for a bit before going back?" the professor offered.

Charlie nodded and laid down on his stomach happy that Larry pulled up a chair next to the couch to stay with him.

Fifteen minutes later he got back up not wanting to leave Don alone for too long. Before saying good bye he gave Larry a quick little hug and asked timidly, "I know I am grounded but with Don here, do we have to tell him?"

"No, we don't and we won't start your grounding until he leaves tomorrow night. I want you to enjoy your time with your brother – just in more legal ways." Larry smiled.

"Thanks, Larry."

"No problem kid." The professor ruffled his hair with a smile and continued, "I know we said we'd have lunch today but maybe you'd like to take a nap or something and we have dinner instead?"

Charlie had forgotten about the lunch plans and was thankful for Larry's proposal. It was already close to noon and he really couldn't imagine having to sit and eat and make conversation right now so he nodded and said, "That sounds good."

"Alright, then why don't the two of you meet me here at seven?" Larry proposed as he walked his charge to the door.

Charlie agreed and said good bye before heading to a bathroom to wash his face. He really did not want his brother to know that he had gotten spanked.

When he got back to the dorm after a slow walk across campus he found Don showered, changed and reading a magazine on the floor. He looked up at him with a concerned expression, "Hey buddy, you have been gone a while."

"Yeah, sorry about that." Charlie responded.

"Oh you don't have to be sorry. Did you get in a lot of trouble?" Don asked worriedly.

"Well, Larry wasn't happy but I guess that was to be expected. It's ok. Anyway," Charlie continued trying to change the subject, "we agreed that we'd do dinner instead of lunch. I hope that's ok."

"Sure, fine with me. Are you sure you are ok?" Don was still concerned. It looked like Charlie had been crying and he was walking somewhat stiffly. Don wondered if the professor had spanked his little brother but that couldn't be, could it?

"I am fine. Just my head hurts. I guess it wasn't such a great idea to drink yesterday." Charlie said giving him a fake smile.

"Why don't you take a shower and then a nap? That'll make you feel better. And I'll get you some water and more aspirin." Don proposed.

Charlie looked at him with a little frown, "It's ok. I don't want you bored here while I sleep."

Don got up and took his brother by the shoulders, "It's no problem kid. I am sure I find something to do for a couple hours. Come on take a shower." With these words he turned Charlie around and gave him a little push towards the bathroom.

As Charlie turned on the shower Don got some more water and aspirin. He went into the bathroom to leave both for Charlie and was shocked that even through the frosted glass doors it was pretty obvious that his brother had indeed gotten a spanking. Don was seething. This guy had no right to do this.

Not wanting to embarrass Charlie he left the bathroom quickly and just left him a note saying that he'd check out the campus some more and would be back in 2 hours to give Charlie some time for a nap.

In reality he made his way to Professor Fleinhardt's office hoping he'd find the man there to give him a piece of his mind. And he was in luck – or so he thought. Without knocking he pushed the door open forcefully and the professor was indeed sitting at his desk looking up startled to find the older Eppes brother entering his office without any formalities.

Slamming the door shut behind him the young man angrily made his way towards the professor shouting, "Who do you think you are, you bastard? I saw what you did to Charlie - you had no right. I should make him call the police. All he did was missing your stupid lecture. You'll never come near my brother again..."

Don took a breath mid-rant. He knew that we should not speak like this to anybody but he was so mad that he could hardly control himself. He started pacing in front of the professors desk and was about to start a new barrage of insults when Larry stood up and surprisingly calm told him, "Donald, I suggest you sit down and we discuss this like adults. If you can't do that then you are free to call your Dad right now and tell him what you just told me."

Don stopped pacing and looked at the professor dumbfounded. Opening his mouth to give an angry retort he was interrupted with a stern, "Sit and be quiet" accompanied by a finger point to the chair.

Taken aback by the strict tone he did as he was told. Larry just looked at him for a long time and waited until Don calmed down somewhat before he started speaking quietly, "When your mom moved back to California during Charlie's sophomore year she only did so because your parents, Charlie and I made a commitment. We agreed that I would act as somewhat of a mentor or surrogate parent or however you want to call it. So whenever Charlie needs help or just someone to talk he comes to me. He checks in with me at least once a day and let's me know where he is going if it's outside of his normal routine. We have dinners together and he's got a key to my apartment and all my phone numbers in case anything ever comes up. Our deal also included that I would be here to take care of the less pleasant sides of 'parenting' should the need arise."

Larry Fleinhardt looked at the young man in front of him and could see some of the anger melting away. As Don nodded his understanding the professor continued, "You know your brother and luckily it is not necessary for me to discipline him often but yes today I spanked him. I believe you are fully aware that he did a lot more than just 'miss my stupid lecture' – since last night he has broken a number of rules we have set for him the worst being drinking alcohol and lying to me."

Don closed his eyes in dismay. When he opened them back up he felt the professor looking expectantly at him, "This is all my fault." He said quietly.

"How is it your fault, Donald?" Larry asked simply.

Don explained what happened the previous night including his brothers' shyness about approaching the girls and offering him beer for the first time which in Don's mind directly led to Charlie drinking more later.

Larry sighed, "You have shown terrible judgment last night. No matter the reason you should not allow your 16 year old brother to drink. He looks up to you and you essentially told him that it is ok for him to wash away his insecurities with alcohol. I expect you to have a talk with him about that."

Don nodded miserably and said, "I know. I was already planning to. And I am sorry about the way I talked to you. I should have asked questions first."

"Yes you should have my boy. But it is quite alright. You were just trying to protect your little brother." The professor said kindly.

Taking a deep breath Don looked him in the eyes and said, "I feel horrible. Charlie got punished even though this is my fault …"

"Don, your brother had the opportunity to make better choices and you certainly didn't make him drink as much as he did nor did you make him lie to me."

Don winced, "He lied?"

The professor nodded, "However, I do agree with you that it isn't completely fair for you to get off scot free while Charlie got a spanking. I had planned to talk to your Dad anyway to let him know what is going on. Why don't we call him together now?"

Don blanched a bit but bravely nodded. Barely audible he said, "I will not see my Dad for at least another week. I am visiting some friends in New York after I leave here." He was pretty sure how his Dad would address his behavior. And it wasn't like getting a spanking from his Dad scared him that much - even though it would be embarrassing at his age - but he hated the idea of having it hanging over his head until he got back to LA.

Larry looked at him sympathetically, "Let's just call him and if you want to and if he agrees we can take care of it here."

Taking a deep breath Don nodded and while Larry dialed his parent's phone number said quietly, "I think my Dad would like to hear this from me."

"I am sure you are right." Larry agreed as he waited for someone to pick up the phone.

"Alan, this is Larry Fleinhardt. How are you doing?"

Don could only hear the professor's side of the conversation.

"No, no they are both alright. But we do have a situation here that I think you should be aware of. I have Don with me who would like to talk to you."

After listening to Alan Eppes' answer the professor handed Don the phone and listened to him honestly and completely recap the events of last night and this morning. He was impressed with the level of maturity he heard from the young man. Don even told his Dad about the way he spoke to Larry – something the professor would not even have mentioned.

At the end of his tale Don looked relieved and miserable at the same time. It was now Larry's turn to listen to a one-sided conversation.

"Yes, sir. I know"

…

"I will."

…

"I understand but that won't be till next week."

…

"He said if you agreed."

…

"Yes Dad. I am really sorry."

…

"Thanks. Love you too."

After these words Don handed the phone back to Larry.

"Larry, I am sorry. I would never have imagined my sons behaving this way. I will certainly have a talk with Charlie later." Alan Eppes apologized.

"I understand. But please be assured that Charles has already been punished. I don't think he'll do anything like this again anytime soon." The professor responded.

"Thank you. I know you don't like doing this. I wish I could be there to deal with them."

"Don't worry about it. It's part of the package." Larry smiled softly.

"Now I hate to have to ask you this but I think Don should be punished as well. Only he won't be home for a while and I don't think he deserves having to wait that long. I fully understand if you don't want to do this. I can find a different way ..." Alan Eppes felt bad for pushing his fatherly duties on the professor who already helped them so much with Charlie but he also hated the idea of making Don wait.

Larry sighed before he answered, "I agree he does not deserve that. I think in a weird way he had his heart in the right place and just went the wrong way about it. I will talk to him and if he agrees we'll deal with it now. I will give you a call later."

After saying their good byes the two man hung up and Larry turned his attention back to Don who did not look too happy.

"Don, your father agrees that you deserve some punishment but neither of us want to make you wait for it. So if you are ready to accept a spanking from me we can take care of it right now." The professor said seriously.

Don just nodded – relieved to get it over with but apprehensive about being spanked by a virtual stranger. On the other hand this man played a big part in his brother's life and was obviously trusted by the rest of his family. "Does Charlie have to know about this?" he asked uncharacteristically shy.

"No, he doesn't unless you wish to tell him yourself. And the same goes the other way around – I don't think you should mention what you learned here today unless he confides in you on his own."

"Yes sir. I won't." Don promised.

Larry went to lock the door. As he came back he fished the ruler out of his desk again and beckoned Don to stand. Sighing he said, "Let's get this over with." and guided Don with a hand on his back into the 'library'. He certainly had not ever imagined having to do this twice in one day – Charlie usually did not require this form of correction but every few months – let alone disciplining anyone besides his 16 year old charge.

As they made their way to the couch Larry could see a look of utter humiliation cross the young man's face. The professor realized that he could not punish a 21 year old he barely knew the same way as he did Charlie. So he said kindly, "Am I right to assume that you'd be more comfortable over the back of the couch than over my knees?"

Don nodded vigorously with a thankful expression and walked around the couch quickly as if worrying that the older man would change his mind. Then he stood there a bit unsure of what to do next.

Larry cued him with a serious, "The pants will have to come down, son."

The older Eppes brother blushed but pushed his jeans down to his knees quickly. As Larry stepped to his left side he turned his head and asked softly, "How many?"

The professor had a hard time schooling his features – apparently the brothers were not that different after all. However, he had not really made up his mind yet so he just said, "Enough to deter you from giving your brother alcohol ever again. Now bend over please."

Don complied still blushing and Larry put a reassuring hand on the small of his back – more to provide contact than to actually hold him down. Both men knew that if Don chose to fight the spanking Larry was about to give him there wasn't much the older man could do. But Don had no intention of fighting, for one he had started to respect his brother's mentor and for another he knew that he'd have to deal with his Dad in that case.

After putting the ruler aside for the time being – Larry was not willing to use it without some kind of warm up – the professor raised his hand and brought it down sharply on the upturned backside in front of him. Quickly a second and a third spank followed. Don was surprised by the strength the slight man could put into the swats. This did not bode well for his rear end.

After a minute or so of firm hand spanks the heat really started to build and Don had a hard time keeping quiet. He desperately tried to ignore the fact that at 21 years old he was getting a spanking – and a deserved one no less. Ashamed of himself he vowed to take this as well as he could. However, after another minute he really could not help a few grunts and yelps from escaping. That is when the spanking suddenly stopped and he could more feel than see Larry picking up the ruler. He closed his eyes in dismay.

Larry did not plan on spanking Don all that hard – after all the kid already knew what he did wrong and had made no attempt to get out of it – but he did want the lesson to stick. So he raised the ruler and let it fall three times on Don's boxer clad backside.

**SMACK SMACK SMACK**

Then he started to lecture. "Under no circumstances" **SMACK** "is it okay for you" **SMACK** "to give your 16 year old brother" **SMACK** "alcohol" **SMACK **

Don could not help a few tears from escaping and softly rocking on his feet to alleviate some of the sting. The professor used his movements to push him further over the back of the couch and gain better access to the under curve of his backside.

"I expect you" **SMACK** "to talk to Charlie" **SMACK** "about this" **SMACK** "and make it clear" **SMACK** "that this was a one time thing" **SMACK** "Do you understand?" **SMACK SMACK SMACK**

"Yes, sir" Don hurried to agree.

With that the professor stopped the spanking and put the ruler aside. He let Don lay over the back of the couch some more to collect his emotions – he had been crying softly but was no where near out of control. As soon as the young man indicated he wanted up Larry helped him stand and then discretely turned to give him some privacy to adjust his clothing.

Turning back around the professor was relieved that the kid had already stopped crying. He wasn't entirely sure if Don would appreciate a hug but decided that despite his age a little comfort should always be offered after a punishment.

The young man accepted the embrace gratefully but quickly pulled away slightly embarrassed. The professor kept a hand on his shoulder regardless and asked, "Are you okay?"

Don nodded and then apologized again, "I am really sorry for the way I acted."

"I know. You are forgiven, kid. I am proud of you for owning up to your mistakes the way you did. Hopefully your brother will take after you in this regard as he gets older." The professor smiled at him kindly.

Don returned a proud little smile at hearing these words. Not many people besides his parents ever said that Charlie should be like him in anything.

"Do you want to stay here for a nap?" Larry offered.

Don blushed but agreed, "If you don't mind. I should only be back with Charlie in an hour or so."

"No problem. Just lay down." Larry gestured at the couch.

After Don did so Larry went to get a blanket and covered the young man before he drifted off to sleep.

Later that night the three of them had a very nice dinner. At first the boys were a bit quiet but soon the evening was filled with banter and stories from the Eppes brother's childhood and Charlie's college experiences. The professor had to smile to himself at the fact that his young charge was having a hard time sitting still but was completely oblivious to the fact that even his older brother let out a little yelp when he first sat down. He supposed it wasn't entirely fair to take them to a restaurant with hard wooden benches but that should have been more than made up by the excellent food and company.

_**xxx**_

_**I'd very much like to hear what you think about this story.**_


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